Dominic Raiola

Bio

Dominic Raiola is a center for the Detroit Lions. He’s a 12-year starter and serves as the anchor of the offensive line.

Early Life

Raiola was born on December 30, 1978 in Honolulu Hawaii. At Saint Louis School he played for a team that was undefeated for three years. After his senior year, the team was recognized as the 15th best team in the country.

Nebraska Cornhuskers

Raiola was the first freshman in Nebraska school history to start as an offensive lineman in seven years. At the conclusion of a solid college career, Raiola earned the Dave Rimington Trophy awarded to the best center in the NCAA as a unanimous All-American.

Detroit Lions

The Detroit Lions selected Raiola in the second round of the 2001 NFL Draft. As the 50th overall pick, he was the highest selected among centers since Dave Rimington, who was selected 25th overall by the Cincinnati Bengals in 1983.

After watching from the sidelines as a rookie, Raiola has held his position as a center for the Lions for more than a decade. Injuries haven’t been a problem for the majority of his professional career; he’s only missed four games since becoming a starter. He’s currently ninth among active players in games started with 188 starts. He’s embodied consistency as player personnel has been a revolving door for the Lions over the past few decades.

News

I’m a statistics guy—I love numbers and I love using them to tell a story. In sports, it’s usually pretty easy. The team with the most points wins, gaining yards usually helps toward putting up more points, and so on... Read more

Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press reports that the Detroit Lions have re-signed C Dominic Raiola to a one-year deal.
The 35-year-old took a pay cut last year, dropping his base salary from $4.05 million to the veteran’s minimum of $940,000... Read more